


Sharks in Open Water

by ladyzeia



Category: Free!
Genre: Fluff, For the Team Zine, Friendship, Gen, Open Water Swimming, S3 setting, Swimming, open water relay, samezuka team, team shark
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-11
Updated: 2019-09-15
Packaged: 2020-10-11 12:21:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,229
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20546087
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ladyzeia/pseuds/ladyzeia
Summary: Sousuke's shoulder is finally healed following his surgery.Summer is fading, but it's not over yet.A story about four friends swimming together.+bonus chapterTeam Shark camping essentials





	1. Sharks in Open Water

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's the piece I wrote for the [_For the Team Zine_](https://twitter.com/FortheTeamZine) charity-zine project!  
Thanks for supporting us!! ❤
> 
> Inspired by an annual open water race in Shibukawa, Japan. Video link at the end. I hope you like it!!

For anyone else, it was a day at the beach, a community event—one last opportunity to enjoy the sun and heat of summer before autumn and _responsibility_ demanded attention. The shore was crowded with swimmers of all ages; the buzz of excitement not much different than the call room at Nationals—if more casual without scouts and official timekeepers and titles on the line. Aiichirou was used to pre-race jitters, not that he was always the best at dealing with them. This was different though, his swim cap crushed between fidgeting fingers, toes curling into warm sand. Why did everyone else seem immune to what a momentous, important day this was? Why was he the only one who might start to cry, even before the race began?

Sousuke stretched his right arm across his chest, muscles and tendons shifting beneath his skin as he moved. The scars were only visible up close; the rehab brace he typically wore hadn’t left marks either. _839_ was written in thick numerals on his deltoids and his gaze was relaxed. It was a world apart from Ai’s memories of the first days and weeks—of bandages, bruising, and stitches, and Sousuke never letting them see the pain on his face (it was there in Sousuke’s eyes though, in the few glimpses Ai caught).

* * *

_“It’s really OK?” Ai knew he shouldn’t ask. At best, he’d get an answer. At worst, one of those mild looks that would have him squeaking out an apology and wishing he could stick his head in the sand. They’d been registered for two weeks and training every day. And yet, he couldn’t help the nerves churning in his stomach as they left the gym for the red-gold sun setting across the bay, the race in less than two days._

_Green eyes flicked to him and Ai gulped, gripping the strap of his gear bag. _

_“Doc approved. I have to use it—build up my strength. It’s all part of the recovery, Ai.” Sousuke’s face softened, Ai’s heart flooding with relief._

_“Senpai…”_

_Sousuke had his hands in his pockets as he turned, gazing fondly at him, Rin, and Momo. “My last race was a relay with the three of you. I want my first to be, too.”_

_Ai’s throat tightened, warm tears welling up and threatening to spill over. He clutched the strap of his bag as hard as he could, but still, thin trails fell down his cheeks as he blinked._

_“Sousuke…” Rin’s voice came out raw, his breath uneven as he fought to stay composed._

_“Senpai!” Momo bounced up to Sousuke, bright-eyed and beaming. “Let’s get ice cream together when we win!”_

_Sousuke bopped Momo lightly on the top of his head. “We won’t win if you try to sprint five hundred meters, Momo.”_

_“I won’t this time!”_

_“Uh-huh.”_

* * *

_I can’t wait to swim this race with you. _Smiling, Aiichirou brushed at his eyes hastily, hoping no one would notice.

“What’s that look, Ai?” Sousuke asked. 

“Er, nothing, Senpai!” Ai blushed, busying himself with his swim cap, working it on over his hair.

Sousuke rolled his eyes. “You too, Rin.”

“Shut up! I just got sand in my eyes.” Rin rubbed the back of his neck, looking away in a vain attempt to hide the redness in his face, his swim cap tucked into the waistband of his leg skins.

Meanwhile, Momo was hopping around in his speedo and swim cap. “Is it time yet? We’re gonna win! Let’s go!” He only quieted down when girls walked by.

“Ai, I told you to hide the coffee,” Rin muttered against his palm.

“I did hide the coffee.”

They both looked at Sousuke.

“What?” Sousuke sighed. “Alright, we took a wrong turn on the way here and ended up at a coffee shop to ask for directions. I only let him get the _tiniest_ espresso—”

He was interrupted by the announcer with the megaphone: _“Teams for the four-by-five hundred meter relay—first swimmers to the water, please.”_

“Yippee!!” Momo’s leap towards the start line was interrupted by Rin snagging him around the shoulders and dragging him back.

“Hang on for a second.”

“Oh, team pep talk, Rin-senpai?” Momo grinned as they huddled up in their coordinated swimsuits, arms draped across each other’s shoulders.

“Yeah, let’s…” Rin inhaled, visibly fighting another surge of emotion. He coughed into his fist and cleared his throat. “Let’s have fun out there.”

Sousuke snorted. “That’s your cheesy, motivational speech, huh?”

“Oi!”

Ai smiled, his eyes moist. “Let’s do it, Sousuke-senpai, Rin-senpai, Momo-kun.” _Let’s show them why we’re the ultimate team._

“Hai!” The four of them bumped fists. “_Go Team Shark!_”

Momo bounded down the beach to the start line, splashing into calf-deep waves and pressing his goggles into place.

“Momo!” Rin yelled between cupped hands. “Don’t sprint the whole thing!”

Momo flashed them an OK sign and a grin.

—Which definitely meant trouble. Aiichirou sighed. 

To the right of the pack of swimmers, the starter raised the air horn. Ai, by reflex, went tense, holding his breath—

At the signal, two dozen racers bolted into the sea, stirring up white foam as race officials, on red and yellow surfboards, paddled along in pursuit. For the first few seconds, it was impossible to tell anyone apart amidst the splashing, flying elbows, and yellow swim caps. But, as the group passed the orange buoy just offshore, starting to spread out, one swimmer leapt ahead in a mix of free and back, running hot—

Rin facepalmed.

“Momo-kun…” Ai winced. 

“Guess we’ll have a bit to make up, huh?” The warmth in Sousuke’s voice made Ai glance over… There was fondness and nostalgia in green eyes, the breeze sifting through Sousuke’s hair. And his smile was 100% contagious.

“Hai!” Ai beamed, eagerly returning to the race. _Because that’s what teams are for._

-x-

The course was triangular; Momo made it two-thirds of the way through the lap before he started to tire and fall behind.

“Momo!!” 

“Momo-kun!!” Ai’s voice was raw from shouting as Momo reached the final straightaway.

“Alright, let’s do this.” Rin grinned, leaving them for the cluster of swimmers waiting their turn beneath the red finish archway in the sand. He snapped the strap of his goggles, leaning forward as the first swimmers came out of the water, running up the beach.

Momo wasn’t last, but he was slow to pull himself out of the sea, puffing as he trotted across the sand in his speedo. “Rin-senpai…” 

“Come on, Momo!” Rin had his hand up for the exchange.

“Hee.” Momo grinned tiredly, the two high-fiving and Rin was off, already passing other teams’ second swimmers as he ran down to the waves.

“Rin-senpai!” Ai multi-tasked, cheering as he got an arm around a wet and exhausted Momo.

“Ai-senpai… It’s _longer_ than five hundred meters…”

_It just feels that way, silly._ He maneuvered his friend until Momo was leaning against his back. “Did you have fun, though?”

Momo perked up instantly, golden eyes shining behind his goggles. Grinning, he draped himself limply over Aiichirou’s shoulders, waving towards the water with both hands. “Rin-senpai!!”

Sousuke leaned in, too. “Rin!!”

It was no surprise that Rin made the other swimmers look like they were treading water. By the time he got to the final stretch, he’d overtaken everyone except the veteran marathon swimmers, and he was even gaining on _them_ as he powered through the last hundred meters back to the beach.

“You got this, Ai,” Sousuke said.

“Ah.” Ai flushed with pride, letting Momo down to sit in the sand. He hurried to the arch, doing his last-minute prep, the usual nerves gathering in the pit of his stomach.

…But the flutters vanished as Rin came out of the water like a bullet from a gun, kicking up sand as he sprinted up the beach.

“Senpai!” Ai leaned in, arm outstretched—

Rin’s hand slapped against his, Ai just catching a glimpse of Rin’s grin, the excitement and confidence in scarlet eyes as he launched forward. Rin’s voice, breathless, followed him. “Ai!”

“Ai-senpai!!” “Ai!!”

Aiichirou flew across the sand, trailing two swimmers as he hit the waves and dove in. The water was salty and warm—choppy with the other competitors’ wakes and the tug of the current—and it never felt so good. It didn’t matter that it wasn’t a pool, that there was seaweed and the threat of jellyfish and other swimmers’ limbs to contend with. With his teammates cheering him on, Ai rounded the first buoy and sighted the next in the distance. Each plunge of his hands into the foamy sea, each kick, each breath was _for_ his team and filled with everything they’d given him.

-x-

Five hundred meters only felt like fifty; then again, distance had always been easier for him. Ai kept pace with the lead open water swimmers, aiming back to the beach, towards the last orange buoy floating in the surf and the red archway in the sand.

—Where Sousuke was waiting.

_Tears and swimming don’t mix, Ai._ How many times had Rin told him that? Too bad his beloved senpai was the biggest hypocrite of them all. Moisture burned in Aiichirou’s eyes, saltwater on his lips as he accelerated into his final sprint, pulling hard through the onshore swells until there was wet sand under his feet.

“Ai!!” “Ai-senpai!!” Rin and Momo were yelling as he scrambled upright, panting, muscles aching as he ran—

Sousuke had his right hand raised for the exchange and Ai almost stumbled. _Your shoulder._ _What if it’s too soon? What if you injure it again?_

But Sousuke leveled his gaze, blazing through Ai’s hesitation and fear with one look. _Don’t you dare._

Ai gritted his teeth, pushing through, tears blurring his vision as he ran three more steps, until their hands crushed together and Sousuke shot past him—

Aiichirou pulled off his cap and goggles, tears mixing with the water on his face as he turned and smiled and gripped his cap in his hands. “Sousuke-senpai!!”

“Sousuke!!” 

Sousuke dashed into the waves, sunlight glinting off the metallic lines on his leg skins as he dove in.

-x-

Ai never really caught his breath, not with Momo on his back and Rin clutching his arm hard enough that it started to go numb. Because this race was _nothing_ like the last one. That relay, at Regionals, with Sousuke finally admitting the truth about his shoulder, had been the _end_. One final race as a team, one last chance before it was all over.

But _this race_… Watching Sousuke swim from one buoy to the next, never faltering, not even favoring his shoulder as the meters flew by— _This_ was a beginning. The future was unwritten, the possibilities were endless, and _nothing could hold them back_.

As Sousuke hit the final straightaway, Ai, Rin, and Momo were at the finish arch, deafening each other with their shouts, louder than any of the other teams cheering on their anchors.

_“Senpai!!” “Sousuke!!”_

There were other swimmers, but Ai didn’t see any of them as Sousuke came out of the waves, water sluicing off his frame, chest heaving with breath—

His shoulder was _whole_ and bronzed and healthy.

Tears sheeted down Ai’s cheeks as Sousuke crossed under the shadow of the archway and ran into their arms. Rin was sobbing and Momo latched himself onto Sousuke’s torso with both arms and both legs. Ai didn’t need to ask, because the answer was in Sousuke’s grin, in the redness of his eyes, in the warmth of his arms embracing all of them.

They hadn’t won, but they laughed and cried and hugged like Olympic gold was theirs. Because victory, for their team, was so much _more_ than times and podiums and medals.

…And they still went for ice cream, after.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [2010 Setouchi OWS 500m relay](https://youtu.be/TP02ifx4R4g?t=2)


	2. Team Shark camping essentials

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the first piece I wrote for the Zine but didn't end up submitting for various reasons. <strike>Not the least of which is that—no matter what I did—I could never get it under the word count, lol</strike>. XD It doesn't have the emotional impact of the relay in my opinion, but it's soft and I still like it. It's Ai-centric (whereas the relay I thought featured the team better), and a bit AU-ish/speculative with a non-swimming future track for Ai. But, I thought, why not post it anyways XD

“Ai-senpai!”

One thing about rooming with Momo, in two years, Aiichirou never needed an alarm clock. “Mn.” Apparently camping—not even sharing a tent—was no exception. He rubbed his eyes and blinked, smelling dew and grass as he looked up into Momo’s upside-down face—bright golden eyes, eager grin, red-orange bedhead—backed by a sliver of indigo pre-dawn between open tent flaps. “Momo-kun…”

Momo beamed at him, vibrating like a puppy waiting for a morning walk, which—given the jangling sounds coming from his backpack and the net sticking out the top—didn’t require much of an analogy, really. “Ohayou! Ai-senp—”

Ai clapped a hand over his friend’s mouth. Momo did _not_ know how to whisper.

In the other sleeping bag, Sousuke stirred but didn’t wake, rolling over with an incoherent murmur before his breaths went regular again.

Pushing Momo out of the tent, Ai wiggled free of his sleeping bag and grabbed a blue sweatshirt, thrusting his arms into the sleeves as he ducked through the tent flaps into the misty morning. It was cool now, but the day promised to be muggy; Ai zipped up the tent behind him before donning sandals. 

The second tent was dark and still, making him wonder what miracle had occurred that Momo hadn’t woken Rin, or that Rin throwing Momo out of their tent hadn’t woken everyone. They were camped in a clearing near the river, at the base of a pine tree with low, spreading branches and featherlike needles. The restrooms were a three-minute walk away—Ai could almost see the glowing vending machine from here. Still, Sousuke got lost twice yesterday—_coming back from the bathroom_—and they had to scour the woods to find him.

Momo hopped from one foot to the other in his T-shirt and shorts, holding the straps of his backpack. “Are you ready, Ai-senpai?”

“Sure, Momo-kun. Let’s go.” _Before you wake everyone. _Ai stifled a yawn.

“Yippee!” As Momo dashed off, irritated grunts came from the other tent. Rin had always been a morning person; Ai was used to him slipping out of their dorm room to jog at the break of dawn while he slept on, blissfully unaware. For a year, he’d admired Rin’s discipline—that and everything else—and though he’d tried to emulate it, he’d never been successful. Not until he got on Momo’s schedule.

Ai trailed Momo as they headed upstream, the clearing narrowing until the tree line met the smooth rocks bordering the riverbed. “Want me to hold the torch, Momo?” He could at least make himself useful. (Even if he secretly hoped they wouldn’t find anything in Momo’s beetle traps.)

He didn’t really mind it, though. It was hard to believe he was already halfway through his last year of high school. Come spring, he’d say goodbye to another set of friends—Momo, his teammates at Samezuka, his friends from Iwatobi, too. All of the third years were eager to launch out into the world; for him it was less of a leap and more like a step forward—one at a time—spurred onward by the confidence and encouragement his friends had given him. He wanted to cherish as many memories with them as he could.

As for his future plans, he’d finally decided; he just hadn’t told anyone yet.

Momo stopped abruptly, Ai bumping into him.

“This is a good spot!”

“Huh?” He watched, confused, as Momo dropped his backpack and kicked off his flipflops, wading into the stream until the water covered his calves.

Momo hunched forward, tensed and still, gaze fixed on the silvery water swirling in a rocky eddy around his legs.

Aiichirou’s eyes adjusted quickly, his sleep-addled brain less so, but he was sure that—in all the stag beetle trivia he’d been subjected to—there was no such thing as a water variety stag beetle. _So why_—

“Ah!” Momo’s hands flashed down into the water. Ai’s jaw dropped as he came up with a wriggling, blue-scaled fish trapped between his palms. “Yippee!! Ai-senpai, get the bucket!”

_Huh?!_ “Momo-kun—” Ai scrambled to detach the empty water pail from Momo’s backpack, leaving his sandals behind as he dashed into the river—

They managed to get the fish and some water into the bucket, Ai gaping at his friend, dawn slowly lightening the sky above them.

Momo peered into the bucket. “We need more, huh?”

“For…?” The water ran icy and fresh around Ai’s legs. “I thought we were going stag beetle hunting…”

“Hee.” Momo rubbed the back of his neck, grinning and blushing. “I wanted to make breakfast for Rin-senpai and Sousuke-senpai.”

Aiichirou’s eyes widened. “Momo—”

“But the cooking part’s hard… Nii-chan usually does it. So…” He trailed off, lips pursed. “I need your help, Ai-senpai.”

There was nothing he’d rather do. Ai hugged the bucket to his chest. “Hai!”

-x-

They got soaked, more fish slipping through their fingers than ending up in their bucket. But, eventually they had three fish of a decent size. Ai was confident his seasoning and cooking skills would make up for Rin’s and Sousuke’s carnivorous preferences.

Stripped down to their boxers (no one was around anyways), Ai cleaned and prepped the fish while Momo hung their sopping wet clothes in the low branches of the pine tree. They set up their cooking surface and gas burner, trying to be as quiet as possible (except for the five times Momo almost burned himself and Ai had to whisper-yell at him to be careful). 

It took a while; the sunrise was golden over the river and the nearby mountain once everything was ready. Coffee was the last thing Ai made, because it was sure to summon their senpai _and_ because, once Momo had caffeine, no one within several kilometers would be able to sleep.

Sousuke came out first, wearing a pair of black sweatpants but no shirt, a rehab brace on his right shoulder. The swelling was gone, the scars from his surgery barely visible anymore. He moved a bit stiffly, drowsily scrubbing a hand through his hair. His gaze landed on the coffee.

“Ohayou gozaimasu, Sousuke-senpai!” Ai popped up, offering the camping mug he’d just filled as Sousuke settled into one of the chairs circling their makeshift stove.

“Thanks, Ai.” Sousuke accepted the cup and tentatively sipped.

Ai waited alongside Momo, hands curled against his knees, barely breathing—

Sousuke smiled. “Umai,” he said, humming his approval.

Ai flushed with delight, Momo thrusting a fist into the air in a silent cheer.

As Sousuke sat back, rolling his shoulders with a wince, though, Ai’s mirth faded.

“How…how is it?” he asked. Sleeping on the hard ground probably wasn’t the best thing for Sousuke’s shoulder, though Sousuke insisted on coming and even put up with Ai’s offering of extra pillows and the like.

“Mm.” Sousuke lowered his cup, rotating his shoulder slowly. “It’s always tight in the morning. I feel like an old man sometimes,” he said, snorting. “But, each day, I’m getting stronger.” He smiled again. “I’m looking forward to our hike today.”

Relief flooded him, tightening Ai’s throat and bringing moisture to his eyes. The human body was amazing, really—the way it healed—and medicine was too. He cried the first time Sousuke swam, afterwards, and wasn’t ashamed to admit it (Rin had been sobbing). 

“Oi.” Sousuke’s voice was soft and teasing. “No tears in my coffee.”

Ai brushed at his face, smiling. “_Hai_.”

“—What about coffee?” Rin ducked out of the tent he shared with Momo in a tank top and sleep pants, raking scarlet hair out of his eyes. One of his brows quirked as his gaze swept from them to their wet clothes hanging in the trees. “Ai… Momo…” Rin scrubbed his face with one hand, something unintelligible muttered against his palm.

“Ohayou, Rin-senpai! We caught breakfast!” Momo beamed from his chair.

“Is that what it was?”

Ai blushed. “We didn’t want to wake you going for dry clothes.” He poured another mug of fresh coffee.

Rin snorted, sinking into the fourth chair. “It wouldn’t have been louder than Pyunsuke skittering around all night.” (A sound Ai was unfortunately familiar with.) “Thanks, Ai,” Rin said, accepting the coffee with a smile.

_Senpai._ Ai blushed harder, a happy warmth expanding in his chest.

Momo suddenly gasped. “Pyunsuke needs breakfast too!” He jumped up and ran into his tent—

Ai took the opportunity to grab a dry T-shirt and sweatpants, shimmying into them as Momo came back with the beetle in its bottle.

“Momo, _clothes_.”

“Nn.” Momo pouted and turned back.

Rin took something out of his pocket. “Sousuke, here.”

The object he tossed was small and blue, rattling through the air until Sousuke caught it with his free hand. A bear bell?

“Wear that today.”

Sousuke lifted a brow. “So I don’t get attacked?”

Rin rolled his eyes. “Yeah, that’s why.”

Ai coughed to cover a laugh and went back to their breakfast preparations.

When everyone was finally settled in, he and Momo served plates of miso-glazed fish and vegetables, alongside white rice.

“Itadakimasu—”

Ai held his plate in his lap, clutching his chopsticks as he waited for their senpai to try the food. As Sousuke and Rin took generous bites, he panicked inside. _Ahhh, did I put in too much miso? Maybe there wasn’t enough ginger…_ He bit his lower lip as he tried to decipher their expressions.

Rin’s eyes widened. “How the heck did you make fish taste like chicken?”

“Mm.” Sousuke gave them both a nod and kept eating.

“Yahoo!” Momo danced in his chair. 

Ai smiled, storing the memory like a treasure in his heart as he and Momo fist-bumped. 

-x-

They laced up their hiking boots, packing water and snacks as they set out for the trail late morning. A few pockets of mist remained, but the day warmed quickly as they ascended through forests and grassy plains, gaining elevation with each step. When Momo wasn’t stopping every five minutes to look for stag beetles, he was chattering on about something (primarily Pyunsuke, capybaras, and Rin’s sister). Most of the way, Ai enjoyed listening, coexisting with his friends and former relay teammates.

The medley they swam together—their whole year together, really—was a defining period in Ai’s life. He’d faced the darkest parts of himself—overworked to the point of exhaustion—when it seemed like his dreams were evaporating, but his friends brought him back, encouraged him and taught him to have confidence _in himself_. Their relay was the crowning moment, but only the beginning of the journey—it was the starting block of his race and he had all of it yet to swim, even if his wasn’t in the water.

_Who says it has to be the last time you swim together?_

The words had inspired him, jarring him to finally move, though—ironically—they were true now. He had the official times to prove it. But that was OK, because—even if he could only go so far in swimming—there was a _world_ of possibilities out there and he never had to be too far from his friends.

After three hours, they reached the grassy summit, making a picnic with their snacks and water, watching the clouds _below them_ drift slowly across the countryside. From here, they could see their campsite on the river and all the way to the sea.

“Ai.” Rin was on his left, reclining on his elbows, sunglasses perched on his nose. “You said you decided about college, but you never said what.”

“Ah, hai.” Ai took a breath, folding the wrapper of his protein bar and tucking it away. Warmth crept up his neck as Rin and the others leaned in. “I’m planning on medical school. …I think I’ll study to be a nurse.”

“A nurse?” Rin sat up, removing his shades.

“Hai.” Ai’s cheeks burned. “With a focus in sports medicine.” He felt Sousuke’s gaze but didn’t look over. It wasn’t a stretch to say that he’d decided right there in the ward, the day they visited Sousuke in the hospital. “I think I could help people. I’d…I’d like to try, anyway.”

“Try, huh?” Rin snorted, smiling at him. “You’re gonna do better than that, Ai.”

“You’d make a great nurse, Ai-senpai!”

He dipped his head, blushing as he acknowledged Rin’s and Momo’s words.

“Ai.”

Aiichirou inhaled and held his breath as he twisted to the side, finally looking at Sousuke.

Sousuke wasn’t smiling, studying his face with an intensity Ai never quite got used to. He didn’t breathe or fidget under Sousuke’s scrutiny, waiting—

Sousuke exhaled. “You know you can’t panic if you do this. You know you can’t second-guess yourself all the time.”

“Hai.” He nodded soberly. Even after deciding, it took courage to actually move forward—to decide that he _could_ do it, not just that he wanted to.

Sousuke’s face softened. He reached out, laying a hand on Ai’s shoulder. “The nurse was the last one with me before I went under, and the first one there when I woke up again. If it had been you—telling me that things were going to be fine, telling me that everything had gone well…” Sousuke smiled. “I can’t think of anyone better suited, Ai.”

“_Senpai_…” His eyes filled with warm tears. Smiling at his friends, Ai knew—without a doubt—that even though their races might take them on different paths to different places, they’d always support each other, encourage each other, and _believe_.

Because they were a team.

“Ganbatte, ne?”

_“Hai!” _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Video of hiking [Mount Daisen](https://www.youtube.com/watch/?v=4vAhxWozc7E), which I picked for its proximity to Tottori (not to mention the views).


End file.
